NCJ Number
189843
Date Published
June 1998
Length
24 pages
Annotation
This document provides an overview of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) roles and responsibilities regarding counterterrorism (CT).
Abstract
EPA’s specific responsibilities and authorities are the protection of human health and the environment, “pollutant or contaminant,” regardless of cause. The EPA participates in United States (U.S.) Government CT activities using the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP). When the President activates the Federal Response Plan (FRP), EPA has the lead function for the FRP’s Emergency Support Function #10 (Hazardous Materials). Presidential Decision Directives #39 and #62 establish relationship of the EPA to lead agencies during CT response. These lead agencies are the FBI for crisis management and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for consequence management. If the incident has not yet determined to be terrorism-related, the EPA lead agency is under NCP. EPA’s CT activities are based on existing programs that address hazardous material (HAZMAT) emergencies, radiation emergencies, and enforcement of environmental regulations. The National Response System has been the U.S. government’s mechanism to prepare for and respond to HAZMAT releases for almost 30 years. It is a multi-agency multi-level response network that protects public health and the environment by supporting State and local response efforts. Federal on-scene coordinators are responsible for all federal containment, removal, and disposal efforts and resources during an incident under the NCP or the FRP. The special resources of the National Response Systems include Special Forces and research, contract, and radiological laboratories. The NCP applies to most radiological incidents and the resources include radiation environmental laboratories and the Federal Radiological Monitoring and Assessment center. Enforcement resources include the EPA’s program for enforcing compliance with environmental laws, the National Enforcement Investigations Center, and a full spectrum of investigative and forensic support for environmental civil and criminal cases.